The Doha Development Agenda (DDA) is still ongoing with several ministerial conferences been held since commencement in 2001. The latest in these series of meetings was the 10th ministerial conference held in Nairobi in 2015. World Trade Organization (WTO) members agreed on several outcomes which culminated in the adoption of the “Nairobi Package”. The Package contains a series of six Ministerial Decisions on agriculture, market access in the cotton sector, and issues related to least-developed countries (LDCs) which include the phasing out of export subsidies for farm exports, preferential treatment in services, and other provisions on preferential rules of
origin.

With the upcoming 11th Ministerial Conference in Buenos Aires in December, this seminar comes at a crucial time when preparations are being made. At this stage it appears that members have reached a point where the nature of the negotiation package and the agenda is being seriously questioned.